More than friends
by ALIENmantis
Summary: "You know, birds and bees Garrus? Do you have birds and bees on Palaven?" "I am a bird, Shepard." Slash / yaoi / gay / mature ME2
1. MedBay

A small chip of concrete disappeared just behind the spot where Shepard's head had presented itself a second before. The distinctive blue tinge that accompanied the impact left no question as to the cause. Garrus always thought that the walls, themselves innocent participants of firefights zealously being fought around them, always turned in such a pretty shade of blue when things got heated enough for the people to bring out the big guns. This happened rather often on Omega… and even more so with him around.

At first he didn't recognize the face closing in on him across the bridge. His mind was focused on the mercs already inside the base, instead. Those poor bastards didn't have any real protection to speak of; none of them could afford it. But no... Those fighters out there seemed different... He knew that it was going to take something bigger than normal rounds to take them down the second he saw the armor-clad figures advancing on his position. "Shield emitters, use distruptor ammo. Ablative armor plating, try AP rounds, but gonna have to hit the neck seam..." He could remember his training by instinct. "What the hell…"

The world seemed to stop around him and for a split second time didn't exist. He'd heard rumors, but he has never given them much thought. Hell... he'd kept his identity hidden even from the team. Damn Sidonis to seven hells... No way could this be a trap. Those trigger-happy mercs probably didn't even have the brainpower to think about using his old friend to lure him out.

In a blink, a blue spot flowered on his helmet and violently yanked back his head. That made him regain his composure. No. It was Shepard. He was sure of it. And that could only mean one thing.

He picked up his rifle and started shooting.

It meant he was finally getting out of here.

"You nailed me good a couple of times, by the way", Shepard said, scratching his ear at the same time.

Garrus had had to, though. He knew the Suns had just as many guns pointed on the backs of their cannon fodder as they had on him. "Concussion rounds only... You'll live."

He still couldn't quite believe that the person standing there was his old commander... his friend.

It seemed like ages ago that he had watched from the escape pod as the Normandy's hull disintegrated in orbit, with Shepard still inside, lost somewhere between the girders.. And now he was standing there, not five feet away.

He didn't let himself slip, though. As much as he would have loved to, there was no time for reminiscing. What he saw on the holo-cams was disturbing enough. A sizeable merc team somehow found its way through the old environmental ducts, and he needed those shutters closed, else he'd soon sport some beautiful new holes in the back. He knew his rifle had to cover the bridge, so there wasn't really any choice left as to who should go. "Shepard, you get down there, I'll keep the bridge clear". "And take care of yourself", he thought to himself... First I lost a commander and then I lost a team... I'm not loosing any of them again.

**"Archangel!"**

Shit, the dropship! Should've seen it coming.

A barrage of metal stopped Garrus mid-thought as the bullets pounded his armor. He tried to reach the cover nearby only to be thrown back by the orange hail. **"You think you can screw with the Blue Suns?"**

A quick jape flashed through his mind: "Well, they certainly aren't as easy to screw as your mother was." One of the bullets pierced his armor and he felt a scorching pain in his hip. The force of the impact threw him on the ground. He managed to crawl behind the reinforced slab. He didn't know who he should thank more - the guy who taught Tarak how to shoot or the engineer who invented the impenetrable flower pots.

Crap. Can't stay here for long. Must move. Now.

His muscles tensed, he jumped from the cover...

... And the world went white.

"Garrus!"

_Breathing was hard._

"We're... you out ... here, Garrus! Just..."

_Words were faint..._

"Radio... make sure... for us..."

_Then there was nothing._

"Move! Get the hell out of the way!" Chakwas looked worried. Mordin looked worried. Since they were the best physicians in the galaxy, Shepard had more then enough reasons to be worried, too. They hurried straight towards the sickbay with Garrus' near-lifeless body in tow. God, Shepard hated elevators.

The gurney levitated through the med-bay doors but Chakwas stopped Shepard mid-step: "Best we take care of him now... Wait with the others".

There was nothing for him to do... Nothing to shoot, no-one to inspire and no-one to lead... Shepard did the only thing he could do.

Watching the small drops of blood pooling on the floor, he waited.

He liked listening to the hum of the drive core. He found the warm sound that resonated through the ship calming; it usually made his mind float. This was the first time in days that he had a quiet moment for himself, and yet he felt so anxious. He couldn't wait with the others... They weren't his old crew... Chakwas understood, and so did Joker. No-one else knew how good of a friend Garrus was... The turian was just a sniper in their eyes, an asset. When he looked at them he saw concern for himself, not for his comrade lying in the surgery with half his face torn off. Looking at those faces, he wanted to kick something in, but the aggression soon gave way to its worrisome counterpart... The med-team looked exhausted, and the best they could say was that "we'll have to wait and see." He couldn't blame them, though... He saw what the blast had done to his face. He knew that Garrus was a fighter, but the worried look on the Chakwas' face left him uneasy...

It was dark in the hallways. Auxiliary lights enveloped the ship in a dim glow only pierced by the sharp holo-interfaces. Since the bulk of Normandy's crew consisted of humans, a ship-wide biorhythm had to be kept in order for them to function normally. The ship was still manned by a skeleton crew, but most of the people on board slept in their quarters. His steps echoed loudly when he walked towards the sickbay. He couldn't sleep, nor did he want to. He needed to see what was happening with Garrus. Exchanging courteous nods with the attending medic, he strode to the bunks.

They had piled his armor on the floor, clearly in a hurry. There was still blood on it, smeared across the chest plate and covering the blue paint with now almost-black crust.

Shepard was a soldier... He'd seen death, he'd seen blood. He was a soldier, as tough as they come, and yet seeing the armor destroyed affected him in a way he never thought possible ever since the Blitz. Fighting the fear he felt festering within ever since the adrenaline rush had subsided, he glanced at Garrus lying on the bed, and the sight sent a chill down his spine. There was a metallic plate covering the right side of his face... A thin medi-foil sheet was draped haphazardly across his body, supposedly for keeping him warm... And yet Shepard could still see how violently the outline of his torso was shivering... It made him angry.

"What the hell? He was supposed to be taken care of, didn't anyone notice he's cold!" It was hard for him to regain composure, and that did not happen often...

"Sir, we've noticed, but... The scans show his internal temperature hovering stably at normal values. Also, there doesn't seem to be any nerve damage which would account for his trembling. Not even Dr Solus knows what's happening but his hypothesis is that the cause is purely psychological. We can't help him... We'll have to..."

"Wait and see, yes, I've heard that sentence one too many times today," Shepard barked back, feeling a bit sorry for the way he scolded the technician. "Go take a break, I'll watch his status for a while, but stay close, in case anything happens."

Shepard realized the crewman had already left the room only when he heard the pneumatic hiss of the closing doors. Watching Garrus shiver made him queasy... He sat at the edge of the bed, vigilantly observing his friend. Seeing the trembling under the foil even better from here, Shepard noticed that quite a lot of it had slipped from the turian, exposing his side to the cold air of the med-bay. Cussing at the crewman for not noticing it, Shepard carefully tugged the fabric so it would cover what was left in the open. Thinking he should get him out of the cold completely, he tried to move the gray hand under the sheet. Slowly touching the palm, he felt his skin rub against the warm hide that covered most of the alien body. Suddenly, Garrus' fingers clenched his own and surprisingly, the turian's trembling subsided a bit. In panic, Shepard tried to pull away but his friend held a tight grip. He didn't know how long he sat there... not long, most likely, but being there, with someone who needed him the way Garrus did, warped his sense of time. The shivering had almost completely disappeared, and now he could clearly see the foil slowly moving in a steady rhythm of breath. Garrus seemingly slipped from the delirium and his movements finally started to resemble something one might call a peaceful slumber. His fingers slightly loosed the grip, yet Shepard still held on.

The room was becoming brighter. At first it wasn't really noticeable. Shadows started to lose their black, turning into gray. Warm yellow night light slowly lost its hue, becoming whiter by the second. It wasn't until the main lights kicked in, though, that Shepard noticed the day cycle was beginning. Had he missed them, he couldn't miss the loud hiss that cut through the quietness of the room. He quickly tucked the hand below the foil and tried his best to look professional while doing it. The medic Shepard had sent outside god-knows-when stumbled through the door, spitting vitriol at himself. They exchanged confused looks. "I... I'm sorry. I seemed to have dozed off. Is the patient stable?"

"Garrus is fine, yes. At your post, and try to look awake when the doctor comes in." Still somewhat shaken from this disturbance, Shepard walked past the battered medic straight to his quarters. At least the poor guy won't tell anyone he saw him, though... He knew Chakwas; she'd have the head of anyone who dozed off while supposedly watching a critical patient. He threw himself on the bed and closed his eyes.

Sleep wouldn't come. His mind flashed with images from the hectic day he went through. Why did he care so much about Garrus? He'd had people take hits for him before, he'd seen good friends die and he always handled that with militaristic discipline that was required from commanders of the Alliance. Were these new emotions a side-effect of the Lazarus project? Miranda said they made him exactly as he used to be, but what if they got it wrong? Why was he so anxious? He kept tumbling in the bed, incapable of going to sleep. Whenever he closed his eyes he saw the bloody armor piled on the floor of the sickbay. Thrashing the pillows only served to shove an even bigger incoherent mess of thoughts through his brains and yet he slowly recognized the feeling that has been bothering him through the day. He couldn't exactly put his finger on it, but he found the word that best described what he felt... He was conflicted. But why did he feel conflicted even though there was absolutely nothing to be conflicted about? In theory, everything that happened was so damned textbook a rookie with psych 101 could've handled it. Though Shepard had to admit not many rookies were dead for two years.

Even though his mind was a whirlpool he kept returning to a single thought. An elusive, warm feeling that pervaded the storm of ideas blowing about his head... A thought he couldn't quite define and yet that felt so wonderfully serene. Trying to focus on it, he found himself calming down. His trashing subsided, his breathing slowed down, and he finally felt his body preparing for rest... Wanting to know what caused this sudden change, Shepard explored the feeling further, trying to feel for the images that he could connect with the golden strands in his mind. The warmth that faintly resonated in his memory creeped itself onto his palm. Suddenly, images started to fade in. First a shiny foil, moving in a breathing motion, after that something grey under his palm, on the same spot from which the warmth originated. And that feeling came with a leathery texture on his skin...

Pieces slowly started to come together and the revelation of what exactly brought him from the storm and calmed him to the point where he could relax would have undoubtedly shocked Shepard to his core… if he had had the luxury of realization, as by the time his subconsciousness took hold of the puzzle, his drained body was already fast asleep.

He slept well in the next hours, but when he woke, he couldn't recall his dreams.


	2. Fornax

_A/N: Hey! A big thanks to everybody for reading this fic. The reviews mean a lot to us and we're always glad to read them. We started writing the fic almost two years ago, not long after ME2 got released. From then, it slowly progressed to where it is now. :) And a humonguous thanks to our beta, Dreamer In Silico, for doing an awesome job with spotting and correcting our mistakes!  
>The next chapter will soon follow. :)<em>

* * *

><p>More than a week had passed, and their quest was going well. He had obtained most of the people the Illusive Man recommended, and only a few loose ends remained. Between the ground missions, strategy meetings and day-to-day operational command of the ship, Shepard didn't really have any free time to think about what happened in the sickbay. At least he had been right about the crewman being too afraid to tell anyone. Garrus was recovering well, although the damage would show. He had already been up on his feet the very next morning, and he'd even been a part of a couple of missions since then. The whole ship felt tense ever since the clash they had with the Collectors, and even Shepard felt certain insecurity in the air.<p>

He didn't want to deal with it right now, though. He had been taking care of pretty much everything for the past two days, and the last business on Omega wasn't exactly a walk in the park. At least he managed to snatch some light reading while browsing the shops. He leaned back in his sofa after he had finally managed to churn through the daily report for a dose of a well-deserved time off. He set the reports down at the table and picked up the magazine, quickly glancing at the vivid title which appeared in the foreground. "Fornax." Behind it, an image of a Hanar appeared, its tendrils twisted in a funny way. "Weird," he thought to himself. "I wonder what this is about."

All doubts were dispelled as soon as he turned the page. The image in front of him shifted and a couple of very blue (and more importantly, very nude) asari materialized between his hands.

An elongated "ooh" was all that he could muster as the realization of what exactly he was looking at slowly came to fruition. He noticed that he had been quite inconsiderate to his body for a while now, and that there was one particular activity which he had rather abandoned as of late. It had crossed his mind, to be honest, especially in Afterlife... those dancers were definitely a thing to look at… but every time he entertained the idea of… taking care of one more basic bodily functions, something else seemed to get in the way.

He shifted slowly through the magazine... The asari couple had gotten bolder with each passing page. What started as a frontal shot of two standing females slowly progressed to pictures on which one of the girls' closed in on the other, shyly at first, with a light touch under the chin, a caress on the shoulder... and the more pictures he scrolled through the more they closed up on one another. A hand moved from the shoulder to the neck; lips started getting nearer and soft caresses turned to fervent fondling. Gazing in the photo of two blue-skinned bodies sharing a kiss with one's hand between the others legs he felt an ache in his own pants.

The next page was completely black except for a small icon in the lower right corner. It was a stylized shape of a camera with the word Extranet next to it. Knowing what it meant, Shepard couldn't resist. After touching it lightly with his finger, an image of the two asari appeared... But this time, the women were moving. Fingers which had been previously still now travelled over the blue skin. As they trailed the contour of the neck down towards her breasts, they circled around and lightly touched a dark-blue nipple. That caused one of them to start breathing more heavily. Lips slightly opened, inviting a tongue which momentarily flicked through, leaving behind a wet trail and conjuring another slight gasp for air. Shepard had his own hand moving by then... He slightly pulled down his pants and felt himself completely stiff when he wrapped his palm around the thing between his legs.

Slowly stroking with his hand, Shepard watched the screen. The two lovers started wrapping their bodies together, nuzzling at each other's necks. One of the blue girls crept towards a nipple again, pinching it ever so slightly before sliding her hand down the lean curve of the other's belly. A finger vanished between her legs only to quickly reappear when she used it to draw a glistening line across her partner's cheek. A smile appeared on her face, knowing fully well where the next place she'll be getting a kiss was...

The sensually-charged scene unfolding before his eyes drove him to the brink. What started off as slow strokes now changed into fast movements, unconsciously accompanied with slight thrusts of his hips. The movements of the blue couple before him also became faster, abandoning the slow sensuality for fast-paced passion. The asari traced the same path she traveled before with her finger with her tongue. Heavy breathing slowly turned to silent moans as the wet trail circled around breasts and moved downwards to fulfill the promise the smile had given not long ago.

Letting go all other thoughts, he let himself enjoy the touch of his hand, the sound of heavy breathing from the screen and the feeling of the build-up, about to be released in a particularly messy manner...

_Chirp-chirp._

A sudden sound invaded his privacy.

_Chirp._

Everything was still for a moment.

_Chiiiiirp-hrrrsk._

What in the world was that? This certainly didn't sound like anything common aboard a space-faring vessel. His survival instincts kicked in, both the magazine in his hand and the cock in his pants long forgotten. He threw Fornax on the table and grabbed the silvery sphere he brought up from one of his missions in its stead. It wasn't a gun, but it was heavy and solid and could do some damage. He jumped cautiously towards the source of the sound. It was coming in the direction of his work-desk.

_Hrrsk. Chirp. Chirp! CHIRP!_

He was slowly creeping forward, adrenaline pumping through his bloodstream the same way as every time when he was thrust into a survival situation. _Hrrrrrrsk. _Slowly pacing forward, he scanned through his desk. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but being inconspicuous would probably be a necessity of a plan for his elimination. He moved closer, and still he saw nothing. No weird blinks, no strange devices. The only thing that was moving was that damn hamster who...

_Chirp. Chirp. _The sounds were coming from the hamster's cage.

As Shepard watched, the furry critter eyed its surroundings and dug its teeth into something that used to be the side of a small wooden house. Another _hrrrrrrrrrsk _was heard_, _and the miniature wall lost another plank.

As the realization of the moment hit him, he stopped dead in his tracks. Beyond a single, tiniest shred of a doubt he had the most massive, gut-wrenching, space-churning case of blue-balls in the entire galaxy. And it was caused by a frigging _hamster_, who decided had nothing better to do with its life than to tear apart its miniscule dwelling. Even Shepard couldn't take this much. It seemed that the Universe conspired to keep him from masturbating.

He was steaming with anger. He thought about spacing the hamster through the airlock or even giving the annoying creature to Gardner to spice up the meat sauce. Hell, he wondered how long the thing would last as Grunt's pet. He could give it to Mordin. The thing sure as hell wasn't capable of calculus. He marched back to his sofa with the shiny sphere in hand, slammed it into the desk, picked up the pile of reports laying there and threw them on the work-desk where they'd be picked up by Kelly during her morning routine. Little did he know that a certain magazine managed to slither in between reports that were meant for Garrus. He wasn't thinking about it as he was taking the ice-cold shower, nor did it occur to him to check as he flopped into his bed ten minutes later. He slept tightly that night, dreaming... Not of the asari pair or even Garrus, mind you... He dreamt that he was in Zaeed's room, and in those dreams, he kept pressing the trash ejection button. Except instead of trash cubes, hamsters were dropping out of the tube.


	3. Intermezzo

"How come there are three of them today?" Garrus got a sincere smile and a shrug, but no definite answer. He sighed and plopped down with the holo-boards in hand. The latest simulations he had run showed the guns to be a bit out of focus, so he had a fun day of calibrations cut out for him... And getting an added amount of stuff to review didn't do much to brighten up his morning. He had disliked paperwork in C-Sec, and although he liked guns, he never really found himself too fond of all the technical aspects that came with being the weapons expert. He desperately looked around the deck to see if there was anything _useful_ he could do, but alas, there was nothing. Kelly had left and everything looked just as polished as three days ago, when he _really desperately_ needed something to keep him busy. He was spending way too much time calibrating the cannons. He wondered why Mordin couldn't whip up a gadget that would at least help him with that tedious chore, so he could have some free time to socialize. Although it was not likely that a lot of people would want to socialize with a half-faced turian. "Ah, well... time to go to work". He reluctantly started the board and began to chip away at the layers of data ahead of him.

As he dealt with the first, fairly standard numbers-and-tables report somewhat quickly, he really didn't see any reason not to push forward towards reviewing the second one. A half hour had passed by the time he was done with the other one too, but curiously, nothing in the files suggested that its contents might spill over to the newcomer of the bunch. As he light-heartedly turned the document on, an audible gasp escaped through his mandibles.

A string of letters appeared on the screen in flashy yellow: "We know what you want."

They just as soon disappeared only to be replaced by a new line: "We brought you your fantasy."

"They are shiny. They are slick. They have tentacles and they aren't afraid to use them."

"Are you prepared for what lurks in the waters of Kahje?"

"FORNAX The _titillating_ xenozine brings you..."

"JILLY TENTACLE, THE FIRST HANAR POLE-DANCER!"

The letters disappeared, and the deep black background slowly shifted to something that seemed to be an underwater shot of a clear pool with a shiny metal pole going through its middle. Garrus observed, completely transfixed, as a vibrant violet tentacle slowly crept from the side of the screen towards the pole. At roughly the same time, the board started playing a cheesy-sounding song and the Jilly came in focus in his or her entirety. Slowly it started revolving around the pole, using the rest of the tentacles for propulsion and as the rhythm of the song increased, so did the speed of its moves. It whirled and twirled around, glowing in all kinds of mind-dazzling ways, a very shiny white then suddenly a strong blue which rivaled the color of the water around it. It spread its tentacles to show the tender belly between them and waved them around to create some intricate movement patterns.

Garrus simply sat there. He felt like his brain was on a receiving end of a particularly big club.

After a couple of minutes of observation, the hanar before him started rubbing its first two tentacles together in what was presumably an attempt at some sort of an erotic dance routine. It swam a couple of more circles around the pole, and then started rubbing the back pair of its tendrils while the remaining six slithered up to form a butterfly shaped object, floating in just at the side of the pole. The hanar started to caress itself on the belly, paying particular attention to a glowing spot somewhere near the center in what could probably be the first jellyfish masturbation act caught on camera and what was_ definitely _the first jellyfish masturbation act witnessed by Garrus. The form was becoming ever brighter, and then suddenly, all the tentacles shot out, in company of the booming music which seemed to achieve its apex together with Jilly. The screen slowly blacked out and the letters were back.

"Ever wished for a relaxing hanar massage while you wait for your next off world shuttle? Join our gentleman's club and you will find our services very pleasing."

And still, Garrus sat there. He had not yet summoned the mental strength required to deal with what he had seen without any warning or opportunity to prepare. The shock of the imagery which now mocked him with bulbous beating of the "replay" button was too much to fully process, even for a hardened military mind such as his. As he slowly started to regain composure, he felt like half of his brain was missing. Where did this travesty of all that was holy and sacred come from?

He turned on the intercom: "Kelly... Where in the name of the Enkindlers did you get the reports you brought me this morning?" After a pause, a voice answered: "The same place as always, Garrus. From Shepard's desk. Why? Is something wrong?"

He took his time to answer: "Nope, everything's great, forget I asked. I'm going back to work now". After a gentle beep which indicated that the connection closed, Garrus plopped down on the floor like a sack of varren dung.

"Shepard? Hanar? _Jilly?" _His work on the Citadel showed him a fair share of sexual weirdos, but he never thought Shepard would be into jellyfish.

The day was coming to an end, and the time to return the magazine to Shepard was creeping ever closer. Garrus paced uncomfortably around his workstation, dreading the moment he'd have to turn in the reports. He had to, though. It was only fair to give the thing back to the commander, lest it be found lying in the mess hall where he knew that the entire crew would make it their purpose to shame the owner. He couldn't keep it. It wouldn't be right, plus... It really wasn't a big deal, was it? It's not like he had any business as to what his captain was doing in his private quarters. But goddamnit, _jellyfish_? He still hadn't figured out how to discreetly return the package. Perhaps just mix it up in the reports, hoping that Shepard wouldn't notice straight away? He couldn't imagine the conversation spawned from the situation where he'd have to explain everything... Or anything, for that matter.

He's going to have to deal with it sooner or later, so it'd be best if he dealt with it now. Repeating the sentence over and over again successfully shielded him from the daunting task at hand... At first. The moment he stepped into the elevator his mental stability broke down and his hands started trembling and all the surrounding information rushed into him. He was going to Shepard's private cabin at evening and bringing him porn. There really was no way to sugar-coat this information. But he was here now and he had to pull through. He was standing before the doors when they suddenly opened and took a sudden step back when he noticed Shepard eyeing him suspiciously.

"Garrus? Is this about the weapon reports? I've noticed you didn't turn them in today and Kelly says you've been acting strange."

"Yes. Here are the reports. Everything's fine, no need to worry. Here's the stuff. Good night."

With that, he twirled around his heels and stormed into the elevator without saying anything further. Shepard thought it strange, for Garrus usually wasn't one for such bluntness. He would have to ask Kelly to check him up tomorrow. He sat in his chair and slowly shifted the mess of pads Garrus pushed in his hand. Report one, report two... Oh _fuck_.


	4. More than friends

Not all days went as well. The entire operation moved into the point where the crew had to get their hands dirty, flying from one point of the galaxy to the other, laboring through deadly robots or angry mercenaries until almost everybody had faced certain death at least thrice over. To say that the work was challenging would be an understatement somewhat alike to saying that Krogan had a short temper. This took a toll on everyone, making the life challenging to bear at times. No-one could blame them. Morale was nonetheless kept high and they didn't find it difficult to talk.

Their conversation started innocently enough, except that this time, Garrus opened up a bit more than he usually did. That probably had something to do with Shepard helping him deal with Sidonis.

"... There were a lot of unhappy betters in the training room. We, um... Ended up holding a tie-breaker in her quarters. I had reach but she had flexibility... More than one way to work off stress, I guess". Shepard never really thought about turian sex until this moment. He found himself becoming uncomfortably aware of the sharp shape of the turian's jawline, when his friend cocked his head. He noticed the way his eyes never completely closed when he talked, thinking gave them a clever shine... He observed his motions, noticing the curve of his fringe and he remembered that night in the sickbay, when he sat awake next to his injured body... Confused by his own thoughts, feeling trapped in a place where he'd never even supposed to be in, he suddenly felt the need to say something. Anything.

Without thinking, he said the first thing that came to his mind; "Well... I could help you relax."

Some uncomfortable moments passed.

Oh shit! It slowly dawned on him. How the HELL did he manage to blurt out something like THAT? What was he thinking? What in the world was he thinking? He didn't mean _anything_ something! Just... Something! Feeling himself blushing, he tried stuttering an apology but words somehow wouldn't cooperate with him. Crap. He hoped EDI didn't hear. Damn.

Garrus looked perhaps not quite as perplexed as one could expect. "I, ah, didn't think you'd feel like sparring, Commander."

Shepard stood there petrified, praying to find a way to keep the miniscule amount of dignity he still had left. Garrus gave him a great fire-escape, but the last thing he wanted now was a fight. He tried to think his way out of the situation.

He didn't really think of much. A moment of silence passed.

"That was not what you meant, right?"

No. That wasn't what he meant. But could he tell him of the thoughts he's been having? No way. He himself didn't know what kind of thoughts he's been having.

"I know it was you holding my hand that night".

* * *

><p>A pale blue dot slowly revolved around an unremarkable yellow sun... As of yet, there was nothing special about that tiny planet floating in the vast emptiness surrounding it. Its surface was mostly inhabited by rather large reptiles, which still had neither discovered fire nor invented the wheel. But there was promise in them... A promise of a race achieving unseen progress that would shake the very foundation of the galaxy and reshape the entire known universe... Sadly, that moment never came. A small asteroid, not even worthy of a special designation, finished its stroll around space. Thinking it saw everything there was to see, it decided to park itself on this nice, speck of dust. From an asteroid's perspective, the planet had everything... It had oceans, it had cute, furry creatures which would tickle its shell, and it had nice soft soil in which to rest.<p>

So the asteroid crashed on the planet. The reptiles died. And a certain soft furry creature that watched the fire falling from the sky never dared to imagine, that in sixty-five million years, one of its descendants would know _exactly_ how the Earth felt in the moment she and the asteroid became acquainted for the first time.

* * *

><p>Garrus looked into his eyes. "You okay?"<p>

Shepard wasn't okay. Not really. He knew what was happening to him, but he wasn't quite prepared to accept the reality of the situation. He was drawn to Garrus. That was the sharp, weird reality of it. Words didn't come easily; the situation in which they found themselves in was unusual, to say the least. There he was, a decorated, hardened human soldier trying to think of a way to court an alien. And next to everything else, a _male_ alien. Still, he was tired of the world jerking his collar, tired of saving a galaxy that didn't seem to give anything back, tired of the the air that electrified every time they were alone in the room. If he didn't take the initiative now, the next time he'd have a chance to do so he'd probably be talking either into a coffin or from the insides of one. It could destroy their friendship, everything they built up to that moment but still… He had to come clean.

"Listen, we've been through thick and thin, we fought the entire galaxy side by side, I consider you as friend as good as they come but… I think I want you to be something more than just a friend."

Although hearing the words out loud slightly shocked Garrus, he couldn't honestly say it was a surprise. He was thinking about this moment for a while now… Ever since EDI told him about what happened that night in the infirmatory. Shepard was looking at him uneasily, but Garrus needed time to think before he took a plunge into unknown.

"Well, why the hell not. There's nobody in this galaxy I respect more than you. If we figure out a way for it to work then… Yeah, definitely." He paused for another second to gather his thoughts. "Besides, it'll either be a night to treasure or a horrible interspecies awkwardness thing. In which case, fighting the Collectors will be a welcome distraction. So, you know… I win either way."

Shepard strode off towards the door, leaving Garrus at his calibration counter with a lingering feeling of unfinished business.

He turned his head around, one foot already through the door. "You know, Garrus, if you're not comfortable with this, it's okay. I'm not trying to pressure you."

"Shepard, you're about the only friend I've got left in this screwed-up universe. I'm not going to pretend I've got a fetish for humans, but this isn't about that. This is about us. You don't have to worry about making me uncomfortable. Nervous, yes… But never uncomfortable. I want to try it with you. I want a few moments that are just for us, before we throw ourselves into hell for the good of the galaxy."


	5. Reflections

It seemed as if not a moment passed between the madness that followed and the time Miranda talked to him, telling about the last few hours he had to prepare. As she stormed off with a salute, Shepard found himself a bit lost. There would be more than enough time for heroic speeches later, and he knew that right now, he'd simply be in everyone's way. He glanced at the galaxy map and unceremoniously walked towards the elevator. This was perhaps the one last chance to see the deck and feed his fish. He hadn't paid a small fortune for those prejek paddlefish just to see them die of malnourishment. Too bad he had never gotten the chance to ask Liara where she got those cute jellyfish in her aquarium. He also might as well take a shower. At least he'll make a clean corpse, if it came to that.

Liking the predictability that being on the offensive brought, he had some time to blow, and he was going to make it count. Although he didn't often get the chance to, he liked to stay fresh. Water drops slowly creeped down towards Shepard's back. At first, there were only a few, but they soon joined together and formed a gentle stream, passing past his neck... Between the shoulder blades and picking up speed while racing towards the bottom. They had a very relaxing effect... He forgot about the looming danger, simply let go and revel in one of the small pleasures a military life had to offer.

He cleaned himself up and got out of the bathroom. He had not even stepped fully into the room when he sensed some movement near the door.

"Hey, I brought wine. Best I could afford on a vigilante's salary."

Shepard crossed his hands and looked at him, rather amused at the entire situation. He expected a visit tonight. He also knew he was going to have to eventually take matters into his own hands, but he enjoyed seeing Garrus sweat.

The turian, discouraged by his lack of reaction, decided to go for all or nothing. He ran towards the wall panel, pressed a couple of buttons and the room started to resonate with something that Shepard supposed was supposed to be mood-inducing.

"If you were a turian I'd be complementing your waist or your fringe. So... your, uh, hair looks good. And your waist is... very supportive."

Shepard's smile stretched from one ear to another. There was something cute about Garrus when he was stuttering like that. There wasn't even a drop of his usual confidence present and his awkwardness made everything even more sweet.

"Hopefully that's not offensive in human culture... Crap. I knew I should've watched the vids. Throw me a line, here, Shepard."

Garrus looked so lost that Shepard simply didn't have the heart to let him stew anymore.

"Calm down, Garrus... You're worrying too much. And talking too much."

He reached towards the console and turned that god-awful excuse for mood music off. The silence that followed broke the awkward atmosphere and everything seemed to take a more serious tone.

"I just... I've seen so many things go wrong, Shepard. My work at C-Sec, what happened with Sidonis..."

He stepped closer to the commander. "I want something to go right... Just once... Just..."

Shepard did the only thing that seemed right. He slowly lifted up his palm and touched the turian's scar lightly with his hand. They lowered their heads toward one another in a gesture of affection, warm and homely, something neither of them had felt for a long time. Garrus was first to make a move. He touched Shepard's arm and allowing the hand to flow down towards his elbow... Not even a second later, he pulled the human into a tight embrace.

At first, they were both calm, simply enjoying the closeness they could feel for the first time. Slowly, though, they started to feel the need for something else as well, and stillness gave way to careful movements.

As they huddled together they could feel the heat radiating from their bodies. Fingers brushed across the fabric trying to get the feel for the skin beneath. A gloved hand moved down his back, slowly breaking the tension. In its place, something else began to take form. A feeling of anticipation... Every touch, every sense was intensified because of the bare, crude fact that they were so close to one another. It wasn't just him, though. There was a bulge above Garrus' crotch that hadn't been there before. Curious, he pushed his hips forward to get a better feel. His own cock pressed against it, just slightly upwards of where Shepard felt his own body harden. Even through the fabric, he could feel his shaft throbbing. His mind went berserk. He started to feel the space in his pants growing smaller and a thought blitzed through his mind... Is Garrus feeling the same thing? He looked up. Garrus was facing him, but his eyes were closed. He certainly was feeling something... His mandibles started twitching. It was barely noticeable... But it was there.

Shepard felt compelled to take matters into his own hands. He felt a sudden urge to grab, to hold, to strip him down and touch his skin directly, to feel the body without clothes, to see what was between his thighs. It was a physical necessity to have as much of his partner as possible.

He began to look for the zipper and it didn't take long for him to find something that looked similar enough. Pulling it down loosened the grip that the fabric held over the turian's skin. The cloth seemed to hang freely from his collar as Garrus opened his eyes and pushed Shepard away, pulling the now saggy shirt over his head.

He stood before Shepard, his torso exposed. A slight "oh" of admiration was heard, whispered quietly into the silence of the cabin. His skin was leathery, similar to the bit that had been visible at his neck. Although, truth be told, there wasn't much skin to see.

Most of his body was covered with brownish-gray plates. There were a couple of smaller, distinct ones right above his waist, all falling into place symmetrically, like a intriguing puzzle. They arched around the back, soon to disappear under the second set which spanned above them, seemingly emanating from the shoulder blades and covering his entire back.

There was one more tier of plates, somewhat bigger than the last. These were overlapped at the top by a massive frontal plate which covered his entire chest and closed around his neck, forming a collar. The plate ran towards the back on each side and joined at the center to form a noticeably protruded line right above the sternum.

His pants were still wrapped tightly around him, showing the form of the body beneath. His legs were bony, arching away behind the knees, creating a sort of a Y-prong. They weren't anything Shepard wouldn't expect from what he knew of turian physiology, but their alien nature seemed strangely compelling.

The bulge from before was gone. Instead, Shepard could see a thick ridge tensing the fabric and he felt himself becoming even harder.

They stood facing each other. Garrus watched his commander intently. Shepard wasn't sure what drove him forward. Was it plain curiosity? Or was it lust, pure and simple? He touched him, savoring the smooth texture of the plates. But what was really curious was the fact that Garrus didn't even flinch, as if the awkwardness disappeared, having been replaced with a sudden sensation of "right"… Everything simply felt right.

He took two full steps forward, pushing the confused alien into the glass wall. The thump scattered the already frightened fish.

Shepard grabbed his shirt and pulled it over his head, showing his toned body.

A slight whimper could be heard from the turian who curiously eyed the human.

Garrus reached out with his palm, placing it across Shepard's chest, brushing downwards to get a feel for the soft skin. The sensation would be a great deal different than the leathery surface of a turian, cool and strangely soft, without any plates to avoid. There were two darker circles, one on each side of his chest. He brushed one of them slightly with the tip of his finger, sending a shiver of excitement down Shepard's spine.

He let out a surprised gasp which sent Garrus recoiling back in fear. As he moved his hand away, Shepard grabbed his wrist and placed it firmly back again. This time, their embrace was anything but serene. Shepard wanted to catch the thought that was driving him mad. A smile appeared on his lips as he softly guided his own palm across the front, spreading his fingers as he went and placing it right above the moist ridge in Garrus' pants. Garrus gasped, and Shepard could feel another pulse.

He couldn't help but to enjoy the way Garrus started breathing more heavily. He was relieved to see that turians were sensitive in pretty much the same way as humans were. His crotch felt even warmer to the touch than the rest of the body. As he was trying to get the feel for his partner, he could sense the throbbing on a finger as he ran it across the grooves. Garrus started breathing faster. Shepard pulled another caress across the cock, only this time, he wasn't exploring it… He was enjoying it. The feel of plates on his chest, the cock in his hand, the claws that gently raked through his back and the sound Garrus was making. He found himself slipping, but then suddenly, he had an idea.

He placed his hand firmly at the glass wall and pulled himself up. Breaths turned into sensations of touch as he felt the air from the turian's mouth break over his lips.

He leaned forward for a kiss, a human instinct which seemed natural to him.

As he was coming closer, his lips didn't meet the purple tongue as he'd expected. Instead, they hit the solid surface of mandibles as Garrus nocked his head to the side. Unsure as how to proceed, Shepard did what seemed best. He licked it. The sensation on his tongue was exactly what he thought would be, raspy and warm. The move seemed to excite Garrus as his mandibles twitched. Now encouraged by his success, Shepard stuck his tongue out, lining the edge of the mouth plate with a wet trail.

Garrus responded in kind and lowered his head down to nuzzle Shepard's neck, drawing a loud moan from the human.

A long, purple tongue started working its way across the neck. Moving downwards, Garrus had no intention of stopping, this time with a clear objective in his mind. He wanted to see what would happen if he crossed Shepard's nipples.

He stopped as he got close, extended the tip of his tongue and gently poked at the center. Disappointingly, this didn't provoke the desired reaction. He looked up, wondering what he had done wrong. He saw a face turned downwards, eyes closed and mouth slightly opened... "Move it," came the words in a barely audible whisper. "Don't just touch them, move the tongue, slide it across."

He gratefully did just that. In an instant, Shepard was hooked. He wanted more and Garrus was willing to give it to him. Once, there'd be just a flicker from below, next, he would run his entire length across the side, the third something in between and by the time the fourth hit, Shepard couldn't count anymore.

Fueled by the desire to go further, Garrus found no reason not to continue. He kept at it, constantly changing the movements so that the waves of pleasure hitting Shepard wouldn't get too repetitive. Shepard gently placed his palm behind the bony neck, letting it rest there as he closed his eyes and focused on the new sensations... The feeling was not purely physical, but also intimately emotional, and the tiny wet spot on the tip of Shepard's bulge became quite a bit larger.

He could feel the distinct texture of the carapace beneath his fingertips. As he opened his eyes, he saw the leathery line of skin trailing off towards the neck. Curious, he decided to follow it while Garrus was giving his body some badly needed attention. He drew himself closer to the muscular neck. Garrus stopped and leaned his head

on Shepard's torso. A muffled whisper was heard: "Go on..." And he went.

He slid his hand upwards, only touching the scales with the tips of his fingers, going higher and higher until he hit the hardened fringe. With no way left but down, his palm retraced its path. As it travelled back down, Garrus finally seemed to completely relax. Shepard rested his fingers on the inner side of his partner's collar. The surface there was different, warmer and softer than the leathery patches that passed for turian skin elsewhere on the body. Shepard massaged the area, trying to get the feel for every part of his partner's anatomy. The movements didn't fire the same intense sensations as they did before. They both seemed to calm down until Shepard noticed Garrus becoming mellower. He pulled his hand across the nape and removed the visor in one swift movement. "It's not like you need that to check my vitals… You'll have more than enough chance to wear it later. Right now, I want you to get as naked as I can."

Blue light from the aquarium reflected over the bare figures and made for an impressive sight. The light rolled over the hardened, muscled body of the human and the slim form of his turian partner, accenting their features and giving them both a chance to look their best.

Meanwhile, Shepard's hand was already fumbling around his belt buckle. A couple of metallic clinks were all it took for his pants to fall around his ankles. His shorts were quick to follow.

Garrus was observing the scene as it unfolded before him. He slowly raised his head, watching the soft human body bathing in the blue light. He drove his gaze over the well-defined chest, across the muscled stomach and even lower where Shepard's cock stood at attention. Humans were of surprisingly uniform color, he thought to himself.

Shepard gripped his partner's pants as he dropped to his knees and pulled them down. The smooth surface of the cock seemed to be glistening wetly. It was purple, wide at the bottom and seemingly becoming pointier towards the tip. But what Shepard found most surprising was the fact that it seemed to protrude from a sort of an opening at its base.

A protest came from somewhere above. "You're being a tease, you know". Shepard took that as an encouragement. He felt the smooth texture as he wrapped his palm around the base. And it was warm, warmer even than the girls he had been with. Garrus was leaning against the glass, his hips pushed slightly forward, and his head was thrown backwards. The surface didn't just appear to be wet, it was wet. His whole cock was covered in something slimy. He fanned his fingers and confusedly looked at the liquid strings which formed.

The pause didn't go unnoticed. "The substance is a natural lube.

males provide just as much as the females."

He looked up and saw Garrus looking back at him with a faint smile. That's what he got for not doing his homework, he supposed. But feeling stupid only strengthened his resolve, and he fixed his eyes back to the thing he was holding in his palm.

It was long enough for Shepard to hold completely and still have to worry if the rest would fit into his mouth. He slowly drew his hand across the shaft, feeling the barely noticeable grooves and probing the firmness of the tissue, the angle at which the shaft neared the tip. His hand slid perfectly across thanks to the liquid that was there from before. He repeated the gesture, enjoying the warmth and the silky, wet motions which soon became faster and faster as he began to feel Garrus tremble. He looked up again and saw the Garrus still facing him, only this time with his eyes closed and his mouth half-parted.

He touched it with the tip of his tongue. It left a strange, exotic taste in his mouth. Not bad, not unpleasant… just different. He opened his mouth a bit wider and hugged the tip of the penis with his lips, then ran his tongue across it. He was growing bolder with each shudder his actions invited, and soon he wanted to feel the slick cock deeper inside his mouth. He was vigilant at first, afraid of harming his lover with teeth, but as his confidence grew, so did his investment in the matter. With each passing second, he started to embrace Garrus deeper with his mouth and soon he had to start moving his head to fully reach where he could. The thought that he was giving a blowjob to an alien, feeling his cock move past his lips, the shudders of the body he felt with his other hand wreaked havoc between his legs. He thought he'd explode and was so sensitive he could feel his own wet drops of pre-cum. He pushed his tongue upwards every time he pulled Garrus inside so that he could feel the texture even more closely. The turian seemed to like it, as he, unnoticeably at first, began to move his hips in Shepard's rhythm. The mass in his mouth began pulsating slightly, growing larger as his movements went faster. For a passing moment he wondered how he could still breathe, but that thought was silenced as the need to feel Garrus cum filled each and every spot in his brain. He felt a clawed hand press against the back of his head, a slight pressure signaling him to move faster and faster. Garrus moved his hips more strongly, pushing his cock inside the mouth just as Shepard came towards him. The arousal made Garrus wider than in the beginning so Shepard couldn't keep the same depth as before. Instead, he focused on his tongue. Keeping the penis in his mouth, he licked, flickered and played with its tip while stroking his shaft with his hand. Suddenly, he felt a powerful throb in throat and he knew he had done well.

Something was wrong. Nausea swept through him and a sharp pain shot through his stomach. He staggered forward and grabbed Garrus' leg. Steadying himself, he tried calming down and taking a deep breath, but as he tried drawing air, only a small wheeze filled his lungs. He felt his mouth becoming numb. His heart began racing in panic and his head started spinning. He tried telling Garrus something was wrong, but his swelling tongue only allowed for incoherent noises as he struggled to form words. He looked up and saw Garrus staring at him in horror.

A couple of seconds passed and finally it seemed as the turian regained consciousness. "Edi! EDI! Get Mordin up here, NOW!" The blue orb that popped up in the corner of the room acknowledged and disappeared. Garrus knelt next to Shepard, who was lying on the floor by that time. His mind raced with worry as the seconds passed by. While he was kneeling, though, something else felt weird and it didn't took him long to find out that it was his cock that was freely dangling right before Shepard's face. After a pregnant minute, doors hissed and Mordin ran inside. An orange omni-tool popped up as he began scanning the twitching human at his feet, oblivious to the fact that they were both butt naked. "Swollen tongue. Stomach cramps. Elevated heart rate. Flushing." His Omni-tool glowed brighter in tandem with an orange aura that enveloped Shepard. Mordin stood up. "Nothing Dangerous. Anaphylactic shock. Allergic reaction. Gave him epinephrine, crude but effective. Should be better in minutes". He made a short but meaningful pause and looked at Garrus as the body on the floor became less and less twitchy.

"Sexual activity normal stress release for both humans and turians. Dissapointed, though. Should come to me first, doctor-patient confidentiality a sacred trust. I'd never dream of breaching it". An orange glow again appeared across Mordin's arm. "Forwarded booklets for review. I suggest you read them before trying again". With that, he turned on his heels and walked to the elevator looking somewhat insulted. As the doors closed, the confused pair that remained behind could do little more than exchange looks.

"Whelp, there goes our privacy."


End file.
